Start editing by typing the command

begin{Verbatim}[commandchars=\{}] pe [-b] [-d] [-x] [-z] [-p emph{profile}] emph{filename1} emph{filename} ... end{Verbatim}

(The name pe was chosen to avoid confusion with other versions of MicroEMACS. Think of it as an abbreviation of "puny emacs".)

The options -b, -x, -z, and -p are optional. They have the following meanings:

-b

Tells MicroEMACS to make backups of the files you edit. It will create a backup file the first time you save a file that has been changed. It makes the backup by renaming the original file before it writes out the new version. If you have defined an XBACKUP environment variable, MicroEMACS treats it as a directory name and moves the original file into that directory. If you haven't defined XBACKUP, MicroEMACS renames the original file in one of two ways:

• On UNIX-like operating systems, such as Linux, it appends a "~" character to the filename.

• On PC-DOS and FlexOS, it changes the extension to ".BAK".

This option has no effect on VMS, because VMS supports multiple file versions.

-d

Tells MicroEMACS to pass the -d flag to cscope, which tells it to not update its cross-reference file (cscope.out). This is useful when using a cross-reference file generated by another program, such as starscope.

-x

Tells MicroEMACS to use the XON/XOFF protocol for starting and stopping transmission to your terminal. This is necessary if you are using a DEC terminal, or any terminal that might lose characters during lengthy operations, such as multi-line scrolls. This option is probably not necessary for Zenith Z-29 terminals, or if your computer uses a memory-mapped display. Unfortunately, this option prevents you from using Control-S and Control-Q while editing. You can get around this problem by reassigning the functions that normally are invoked with these keys to other keys. These key assignments could be placed in your startup profile (see the Profiles section).

-z

Tells MicroEMACS to append a Control-Z to output files, and to treat Control-Z as an end-of-file character when reading text files or profiles. This option is provided for compatibility with older editors and language processors. It has no effect on VMS or UNIX.

-p profile

Tells MicroEMACS to read the specified profile at startup, instead of the default profile. See the Profiles section for more information about profiles.

-r

Tells MicroEMACS to mark all buffers as read-only by default. This is useful in preventing unwanted changes being made when browsing files. A buffer can subsequently be made read-write with the toggle-readonly command.

The filenames filename1, filename2, etc., are the names of the files you want to edit. MicroEMACS will load the specified files into separate buffers, and you can start editing them.

MicroEMACS will create up to two split-screen windows to view the first two files you specify. If you specify only one file, MicroEMACS will create one full-screen window. The commands for manipulating windows are described in the Window Management section.

Any changes you make to a file while it is in a buffer will not affect the original file until you tell MicroEMACS to save the file.

You can omit the filenames when you start. MicroEMACS will present you with an empty buffer called "main", which has no associated filename. You can give this buffer a filename, or read a file into it, or you can read files into their own separate buffers. The commands for reading and saving files are described in the Files section.

After MicroEMACS reads in the files you specify (if any), but before it accepts any keyboard entries, it executes the commands in the startup profile (either the one you specified with the -p option, or the default profile).